The plump ghost wandered towards the golden light in a daze, and soon the ghostly figure twisted and fell into the Soul Calming Talisman.
Seeing this, Zhao Xing did not stop him; the ghostly wealth was too distant, and to inquire about the whereabouts of the treasure would likely require helping this plump ghost fulfill a wish.
Too troublesome. Zhao Xing came to seek illicit ghostly wealth, aiming for a sudden windfall. If there were too many twists and turns, he might as well return to farming.
Moreover, this also involved the assessment of the Temple of Divinity personnel. From another perspective, he was also unwilling to have outsiders interfere, as it was unnecessary to offend someone over a small amount of money.
“No rush, there are plenty of opportunities.” Zhao Xing glanced back without a care and quickly returned to the vendor.
Old Xu Ba, seeing Zhao Xing return, finally breathed a sigh of relief. He was genuinely worried that Zhao Xing would not return and then spread rumors, ruining the reputation of the river gatherers.
“Master, you told me to wait, and then you vanished in the blink of an eye.”
“Oh, I saw an acquaintance. Let’s go check out the South Lake District.”
Once again, it was this perfunctory remark. Old Xu Ba did not dare to ask more questions. Seeing that they were finally getting down to business, he perked up, grabbed his tools, and followed.
As they arrived at the South Lake District, it was still brightly lit, but this light came more from the lake than from the ground.
The atmosphere also became tranquil, devoid of the usual clamor.
“Eh?” While walking along the lakeside corridor, Old Xu Ba suddenly stopped and looked in a certain direction.
“What’s wrong?” Zhao Xing asked.
“Oh, I saw an acquaintance.” Old Xu Ba waved his hand.
“……” Zhao Xing looked at him with a half-smile, as if to say, now you’re the one being perfunctory.
However, he had indeed misjudged Old Xu Ba.
“Master, don’t misunderstand. I really saw an acquaintance. Do you see that woman in the coarse clothes ahead? Yes, the one next to the girl in white.” Old Xu Ba pointed in a direction.
“I see.” Zhao Xing nodded. Not far from the shore, there was a small boat with a mother and daughter on it, lighting a few fishing lanterns, seemingly busy with something.
“Lin Sanniang from Ping Si Bay, she’s from my hometown. Her husband used to do this, but after her husband had an accident, she took over and became a new river gatherer.”
“However, ever since her son started his own family, she hasn’t gone into the water for years. I wonder why she’s back to her old profession today.” Old Xu Ba was somewhat puzzled.
Zhao Xing observed carefully. Under the Bright Eyes Technique, he could tell that Old Xu Ba was not lying; the middle-aged woman’s attire and tools were indeed similar to Old Xu Ba’s.
As for the young girl, she was dressed neatly, her plain clothes shimmering slightly.
“Hmm? First-level法衣?” Zhao Xing turned to Old Xu Ba, “Is her daughter a weaver from the Weaving Bureau?”
Old Xu Ba shook his head: “She doesn’t have a daughter; that’s her niece, Lin Baiwei. But she’s practically like a daughter, raised by Lin Sanniang since childhood. It seems she indeed entered the Grain City Weaving Bureau.”
Weavers are officials of the Weaving Bureau. The Great Zhou Dynasty has always been open-minded, and it is quite common for women to work and hold official positions.
The profession of a weaver mainly involves ‘weaving法衣,’ and weavers are considered a relatively important magical profession.
Zhao Xing nodded slightly: “It seems Lin Sanniang is returning to her old profession for her niece.”
Old Xu Ba asked, “How do you know, Master?”
Zhao Xing pointed out, “Lin Sanniang doesn’t seem to be looking for treasures but rather preparing to gather lake silk.”
“The assessments of the Weaving Bureau mostly relate to weaving法衣.”
“Now it’s already August, the season of the end of summer, and the usual first, second, and last silkworms are all gone.”
“Only the water silkworm lake silk can still be gathered, and its quality is even better.”
Seeing Old Xu Ba’s look of admiration, Zhao Xing became more interested and elaborated: “Weavers who haven’t reached the rank mostly can only use this material. The silks that are white, fine, and resilient are called 合罗法衣.”
“Wearing it keeps one warm in winter and cool in summer, can dispel wind and dampness, and also helps weak children grow healthy.”
“The slightly inferior ones are called 串五法衣, and the next tier is 肥光法衣.”
“Those made from lake silk are mostly 合罗法衣, but the conditions for gathering silk are strict. Generally, it can only be found around the River Lantern Festival, and it must be at night; during the day, the lake silkworms retract, making it impossible to gather.”
“So I said Lin Sanniang returned to her old profession for her niece; this task is actually more efficient for you river gatherers.”
Old Xu Ba couldn’t help but give a thumbs up: “Master, you really know a lot.”
Zhao Xing smiled and said, “Since she’s an acquaintance, will you go greet her? I’m not in a hurry.”
Old Xu Ba shook his head repeatedly: “Lin Sanniang has to undress to go into the water. What if I run into her… Am I Old Xu Ba that kind of person? No way, no way.”
Zhao Xing chuckled lightly, relieved for Old Xu Ba.
Since there was a Temple of Divinity organizing assessments on the shore, Zhao Xing rented a small boat to go into the water.
At this time, there were very few people releasing river lanterns; instead, there were a few large boats and a dozen small boats on the water, with candle flames flickering on the surface, and the surroundings were quiet.
Zhao Xing said nothing, quietly listening and watching.
He did not see a single person, but he encountered quite a few wandering souls.
Some were lying by the river lanterns, while others swam below, absorbing the yellow paper and incense.
These wandering souls were not necessarily all human; some were also the souls of aquatic creatures or bizarre combinations.
For instance, as Zhao Xing’s small boat passed a certain spot, he saw a wandering soul with a fish head and a human body.
Even those who lived long would be periodically cleared out by the divine personnel.
He could still hear:
“What are you doing?”
“I want to go over there.”
“What are you doing?”
“I want to go over there.”
Not far from a large river lantern, two strangely shaped wandering souls were mechanically conversing, repeating these two sentences back and forth, one wanting to go over, the other asking what they were doing, lacking wisdom and only possessing souls, that was how it was.
Still, these wandering souls posed no threat; they were purely a natural phenomenon, and the vast majority would dissipate within seven days.
“Stop here for a moment.” Zhao Xing suddenly pointed to a certain spot.
Old Xu Ba immediately paddled over, his eyes lighting up: “Master, this section of the lake is clear, but there are quite a few fish swimming. Could there be treasures attracting them? I’ll go down and take a look.”
“Mm.” Zhao Xing’s Bright Eyes Technique easily revealed the lakebed, where there were two first-level upper-grade East Lake Pearls.
The price was average; the market price was about one or two silver coins. If the quality was good, it could sell for a bit more, but it would never exceed two taels.
Mainly, East Lake was not lacking in such items; only if they reached second or third level could they fetch a good price.
Sure enough, Old Xu Ba soon surfaced, holding a shiny pearl the size of a chicken egg: “Master, I’ve gathered two lake pearls!”
“Thank you, come up quickly.” Zhao Xing took the pearls, both of which were first-level upper-grade, which was about enough to break even.
Before he could admire them further, a series of faint sounds drifted in the wind.
“Light, such a bright light, it’s blinding.”
“Turtle, turtle, over there, it’s so cold, it’s freezing me to death. I want to stay away from it.”
(End of Chapter)